Prev | Current Page 344 | Next

Defoe, Daniel, 1661-1731

"Memoirs of a Cavalier A Military Journal of the Wars in Germany, and the Wars in England. From the Year 1632 to the Year 1648."

Upon this advice we resolved to be gone; and, getting all
things in readiness, we began to march about two hours before night.
And having gotten a trusty fellow for a guide, a fellow that we found
was a friend to our side, he put a project into my head which saved
us all for that time; and that was, to give out in the village that
we were marched to Yorkshire, resolving to get into Pontefract Castle;
and accordingly he leads us out of the town the same way we came in,
and, taking a boy with him, he sends the boy back just at night, and
bade him say he saw us go up the hills at Blackstone Edge; and it
happened very well, for this party were so sure of us, that they had
placed 400 men on the road to the northward to intercept our retreat
that way, and had left no way for us, as they thought, to get away but
back again.
About ten o'clock at night, they assaulted our quarters, but found we
were gone; and being informed which way, they followed upon the spur,
and travelling all night, being moonlight, they found themselves the
next day about fifteen miles east, just out of their way. For we had,
by the help of our guide, turned short at the foot of the hills, and
through blind, untrodden paths, and with difficulty enough, by noon
the next day had reached almost twenty-five miles north, near a town
called Clitheroe.


Pages:
332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356